Suspended Fox Business host Charles Payne calls sexual harassment claims an ugly lie as analyst Scottie Nell Hughes alleges he coerced her into 3 year affair
Charles Payne, host of Fox Business's Making Money, has lashed out at former contributor Scottie Nell Hughes for accusing him of sexual harassment.
Payne, who was suspended when the one-time CNN and Fox pundit alleged that he had coerced her into a three-year affair, dismissed her on Twitter.
He said that he had been approached for a quote about the allegations last week by an unnamed reporter who then didn't use his comment.
Payne tweeted that he told the reporter: 'That is an ugly lie I vehemently deny to my core. There is a mountain of proof that also proves its a lie.'
The Fox Business host (pictured with his wife) a married father, as admitted to the affair, but denies claims that he coerced Hughes into the relationship with threats of reprisals
The Fox host also said he 'will fight this like a lion armed with truth. Thanks so much to all those that have reached out in support. #FightingBack.'
This week it emerged that Payne, who has a wife, had been accused of having a three-year affair with the married political analyst.
On Wednesday Payne admitted to the affair and apologized to his family. However, he denied the claims made against him by Hughes that he had threatened her with 'reprisals' if she didn't have an affair with him.
Their relationship was well-known within Fox News circles, ten sources told the Huffington Post.
On Friday Payne made a series of tweets in which he refuted the claims made by Hughes
He claimed they were an 'ugly lie' and said he had a 'mountain of proof' to back him up
He promised to 'fight this like a lion armed with the truth'
Hughes is best known for her pro-Trump appearances on CNN during last year, when she made a string of gaffes, including referring to Molotov cocktails as 'Mazel Tov cocktails'.
But she also worked as an unpaid guest commentator on Fox from 2013-2016 - during which time she struck up an affair with the married father, according to the Los Angeles Times.
They barely hid their illicit encounters, apparently sharing a hotel room at a May 2015 company trip to the Money Show in Las Vegas, sources told The Huffington Post.
Payne, who was hosting Making Money With Charles Payne at the event, disappeared with Hughes for 'hours' at one point, the sources claimed.
And Hughes, who is also married, attended Payne's birthday party at his home in 2015, where the pair's behavior reportedly made Payne's wife uncomfortable.
Hughes now claims that she was coerced into the relationship with threats of reprisals.
But she also told her lawyer that she had stayed in the relationship because she thought he would help her land a permanent position at the network, sources told the Times.
Hughes tried to talk about the situation with former head of programming Bill Shine, who left Fox News this May - but to no avail, her lawyer says.
She eventually reported the affair to Fox's law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, when it ended in 2015, telling them of the threats she had allegedly received.
She says that led to her being blackballed from the show.
Sources say Hughest (not pictured) was blackballed after Payne's (center) wife saw them together at his birthday party and told ex-Fox exec Bill Shine of her concerns
But according to the Huffintgon Post, the channel stopped bringing her in after Payne's wife - upset by the pair's behavior at his birthday party - told Shine.
He then barred her from appearing on Fox News or Fox Business, multiple insiders said, despite her vehement support for Trump making her an ideal fit for the channels.
Hughes' lawyer is now preparing a legal complaint against Fox News and Payne.
Payne, a married father, acknowledged to the extramarital affair on Wednesday.
'I would like to extend an apology to my family and friends for having been involved in a romantic affair that ended two years ago,' he said in a statement to the National Enquirer.
However, Payne's s lawyer told the Los Angeles Times that his client 'categorically denies' any acts of sexual harassment against Hughes.
Payne, who was suspended when the one-time CNN and Fox pundit alleged that he had coerced her into a three-year affair, dismissed her on Twitter.
He said that he had been approached for a quote about the allegations last week by an unnamed reporter who then didn't use his comment.
Payne tweeted that he told the reporter: 'That is an ugly lie I vehemently deny to my core. There is a mountain of proof that also proves its a lie.'
The Fox Business host (pictured with his wife) a married father, as admitted to the affair, but denies claims that he coerced Hughes into the relationship with threats of reprisalsThe Fox host also said he 'will fight this like a lion armed with truth. Thanks so much to all those that have reached out in support. #FightingBack.'
This week it emerged that Payne, who has a wife, had been accused of having a three-year affair with the married political analyst.
On Wednesday Payne admitted to the affair and apologized to his family. However, he denied the claims made against him by Hughes that he had threatened her with 'reprisals' if she didn't have an affair with him.
Their relationship was well-known within Fox News circles, ten sources told the Huffington Post.
On Friday Payne made a series of tweets in which he refuted the claims made by Hughes
He claimed they were an 'ugly lie' and said he had a 'mountain of proof' to back him up
He promised to 'fight this like a lion armed with the truth'
Hughes is best known for her pro-Trump appearances on CNN during last year, when she made a string of gaffes, including referring to Molotov cocktails as 'Mazel Tov cocktails'.
But she also worked as an unpaid guest commentator on Fox from 2013-2016 - during which time she struck up an affair with the married father, according to the Los Angeles Times.
They barely hid their illicit encounters, apparently sharing a hotel room at a May 2015 company trip to the Money Show in Las Vegas, sources told The Huffington Post.
Payne, who was hosting Making Money With Charles Payne at the event, disappeared with Hughes for 'hours' at one point, the sources claimed.
And Hughes, who is also married, attended Payne's birthday party at his home in 2015, where the pair's behavior reportedly made Payne's wife uncomfortable.
Hughes now claims that she was coerced into the relationship with threats of reprisals.
But she also told her lawyer that she had stayed in the relationship because she thought he would help her land a permanent position at the network, sources told the Times.
Hughes tried to talk about the situation with former head of programming Bill Shine, who left Fox News this May - but to no avail, her lawyer says.
She eventually reported the affair to Fox's law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, when it ended in 2015, telling them of the threats she had allegedly received.
She says that led to her being blackballed from the show.
Sources say Hughest (not pictured) was blackballed after Payne's (center) wife saw them together at his birthday party and told ex-Fox exec Bill Shine of her concerns
But according to the Huffintgon Post, the channel stopped bringing her in after Payne's wife - upset by the pair's behavior at his birthday party - told Shine.
He then barred her from appearing on Fox News or Fox Business, multiple insiders said, despite her vehement support for Trump making her an ideal fit for the channels.
Hughes' lawyer is now preparing a legal complaint against Fox News and Payne.
Payne, a married father, acknowledged to the extramarital affair on Wednesday.
'I would like to extend an apology to my family and friends for having been involved in a romantic affair that ended two years ago,' he said in a statement to the National Enquirer.
However, Payne's s lawyer told the Los Angeles Times that his client 'categorically denies' any acts of sexual harassment against Hughes.
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